We want every candidate for mayor to hear our voices and understand what it will take to make SF the best place to raise kids and have families. We are hosting the first Mayoral Candidate Forum focused on our issues.

Please come to hear how each candidate understands your needs and his/her ideas regarding this City and family issues.

Tuesday October 11th from 6:30 to 8:30
2266 California Street

Refreshments, childcare, and interpretation services will be provided.

I have what I hope is a question quick to answer: When are people trick-or-treating in Noe this year since Halloween falls on a Monday? Still Monday night I'm assuming? SF seems to take it's Halloween very seriously. This is my first Halloween as a mom so I'm not sure what local tradition is along these lines.

September 23, 2011

A hat tip to SF Weekly for pointing us to the following assessment of Noe Valley by the BBC:

Noe Valley is one of the most desirable neighbourhoods in San Francisco right now. It is close by the Castro and the Mission, but it [is] filled with yummy mummies and the stroller set, sidewalk cafes and lovely old Victorians.

September 22, 2011

While we weren't watching Raquel Settles Metalsmith opened up at 4128 24th Street -- once destined to be Noe Soup and before that part of the BJ Droubi Empire. The tiny jewelry store carries one-of-a-kind handmade items (earrings/necklaces made from antique glass buttons from the UK, for instance) and also does repairs.

Look, it had cash in it and those visa gift cards that were supposed to go to my daughter’s teachers so you got some nice stuff out of it.It had a pen I liked, and who knows, maybe you even get to keep the stuff you charged on my Amex before I canceled it.

But you know what?That dumb handkerchief that I know you don’t care about, it was from my wedding, and that’s what I miss the most.

If you have any heart at all in you, can you please put the handkerchief in my mailbox at 61 Vicksburg (the house you took it from)?I don’t care about the rest of it, keep it, sell it, whatever.I just want the handkerchief back.

September 15, 2011

Looks like truth in advertising for the shop opening in the space last used by Mystery Books:

Located in the heart of San Francisco, Cliché Noe is a 'varietal' gift store. Filled with eclectic gifts specifically tailored to appeal to all ages, we want to welcome you to our neighborhood. Our soft opening date is set for November 25th, so look for updates!

September 14, 2011

Noe Valley resident Catherine Bergstrom is organizing a benefit for the victims of last weekend's fire. Click the image to see the official flyer or the details are below:

Noe Valley Friends & Neighbors Helping Neighbors

A Benefit for the Victims of the Radio Shack Apartment Fire

Thursday, October 6, 2011 @ 6 – 9 pm
The Valley Tavern in Noe Valley

As you may know, there was a devastating fire on the 4000 Block of 24th Street on
Saturday, September 10, 2011. Seven residents who lived in the building have been displaced, most of them having lost everything that they own.

They have many needs and perhaps you can donate time, have an apartment to rent to them or can contribute a few household items that they could use.

Let’s rally together to help them regain their lives. Come meet more of your neighbors.

Please show your care for your fellow Noe Valley and San Franciscan neighbors.

HOW YOU CAN HELP:
You can help by contributing to a special benefit account for the victims (Wells Fargo #3191560626); and/or by attending a benefit for these fire victims to be held on Thursday, October 6th (6-9pm) at The Valley Tavern (4054 24th Street).

RAFFLE:
The raffle will be held during this fundraiser. Raffle Tickets will be sold at The Valley Tavern beginning Saturday, September 17th. There are some fantastic prizes!

In the last few days since the fire that destroyed our Noe Valley apartment, I've been thinking more than ever before about the concept of 'home'—and trying to extract any meaning from our temporary loss. We're lucky, though, and I know that: nobody was hurt in the fire, and we were able to salvage most of our belongings.

Our upstairs neighbors, though, were not as fortunate. They lost many of their personal items.

We'd just begun to settle into our place, when this fire hit.

While I had never initially made a target of living in Noe Valley (not fitting into the stereotypes since I am both childless and dogless), I couldn't help but fall in love with the apartment when I first saw it—the light, the large rooms, the hardwood floors, the huge closets. The apartment had just had a fresh makeover, after twenty years' occupation by the same tenant, and it was beautiful. Our landlord was amazingly kind and trusting; she let us come over a few weeks before the apartment was finished to repaint the rooms in the color of our choice, to paint cabinets and to make small modifications for our aesthetic pleasure.

Have fun playing house, she said to us.

Having a naturally nomadic spirit (in the last ten years, I had lived in North Carolina, Hanoi, Saigon, London, San Francisco, Hanoi, Geneva, Hanoi, and San Francisco)—I was more than ready to call this apartment my home. My housemates—one who'd just moved here from Boston—were equally ready to commit to the place. We befriended our upstairs neighbors and a week after we moved in, we'd already thrown our first full house party. A Halloween party, hosted by the two apartments, was already in the works.

I focused on perfecting the back rooms: the kitchen and the living room. I wanted it to be beautiful, I wanted it to be home. I found a customized reclaimed wood table for the kitchen, had shelves installed, painted tables and chairs bought from Craigslist, found vintage tins, ordered lamps from a vendor at the Alameda Flea Market, and displayed the items I'd brought from Vietnam. All of us worked to create an ambience that would reflect our three personalities: a space we could all call home. We wanted to put love into this house, to make it grow and flourish.

After about six weeks, we weren't quite finished. One of my housemates had arranged to have all his childhood belongings sent to the house. His boxes sat in the front room, waiting to be unpacked. Though it was still unfinished, the house had already started feeling like home to us. We held dinner parties, received friends visiting from other cities and countries. Always, I felt secretly delighted when friends would comment: how beautiful the house was; how warm it felt. Congratulations, one said.

For the first time in my life I relished the fact that I felt no desire to leave. I felt rooted and solid in this physical structure, certain that my San Francisco life was beginning—now that I finally had a real home. I relied on this structure to ground me in a place. I kept telling myself to consider the importance of 'home:' that for a person to really flourish, he/she needed to feel grounded in something.

We were at a barbecue on Saturday afternoon when we began receiving worried texts and calls from friends in the neighborhood . One text: I don't mean to alarm you, but I think your building is on fire. I didn't really believe that the fire was in our building. It wasn't possible. It couldn't be. In the taxi, my friend called Radio Shack, which is located on the first floor of our building: no one answered. He then called Valley Tavern, the bar across the street from our house, who confirmed that it was the Radio Shack building that had caught fire.

It didn't really hit me on Saturday night, even after I had seen for myself the damage inside our apartment. It didn't really hit me on Sunday or Monday. I was too busy thinking about what was next—where were we were going to live; trying to move what remained of our belongings out of the house. There was too much to do to really absorb the reality, let alone what it might in the long view.

Over the past few days, we've received an outpouring of support from neighbors and friends who've offered to help us in any way possible. The night of the fire Valley Tavern gave us free drinks, Patxi's brought pizzas to us, Bernie continues to offer me free coffee and kind words. One concerned neighbor left a note on the door, asking if she could host a fundraiser for us. Supervisor Wiener's office calls us almost daily (sometimes twice a day). We were amazed by the support.

Even though my housemates and I are temporarily staying in other neighborhoods, we still go back to Noe Valley to attend to business, trying to extract the rest of our belongings. The benches on 24th Street have become the new meeting place for the displaced tenants of 4051 and 4051A, as we put the pieces back together.

What I've come to realize, only a few days after the fire, is that one of the lessons that I've already gained from this ordeal is a broadened perspective of home.

Now, I see that home is not just about the physical structure, or the comfort, say, of my bedroom. A true home extends beyond the actual structure. Home to me now encompasses the upstairs neighbors, our friends in Noe Valley, and the beautiful city of San Francisco. It's so much more than I thought it was—so much bigger, so much stronger, so much more beautiful.

We understand this is short notice but these victims are in need of your kind assistance. We are collecting items for our raffle and turning to you in hopes that you would be able to donate to this cause. We appreciate your help and consideration!

September 9, 2011

The two trees in front of Real Foods are set for removal at the request of the owner, who apparently came out of hiding. The notice states multiple trunk injuries, decay, etc. The notice also states that the trees will be replaced by the Noe Valley Association, which is great but will leave a gap in the canopy for some time.

If you'd like to make the building owner show up at request a hearing to appeal the trees' removal contact the DPW Urban Forestry department at 2323 Cesar Chavez St, SF CA 94124. You can fax your letter to (415) 695-2147.

September 8, 2011

The Noe Valley Voice is published ten times a year and has been a neighborhood fixture since 1977. Here are highlights from the latest issue. Links are to items we've covered here on NVSF or outside sources as the Voice doesn't post stories online until mid-month.

September 2011

Front Page: Noe Valley Wine Walk is coming Sept 14 (a $30 wristband gets you unlimited pours from 19 shops and restaurants) and organizers expect 400 to 600 tasters; Noe Valley gets its own lipstick line; former St. Paul's Priest slammed for child abuse; 98-year old Keiko Fukuda earns Judo's highest honor of 10th degree black belt; results from the Census 2010 (highlights: Noe has lost a few residents since 2000, gained toddlers- up 50% from a decade ago, and "Snowy Valley" has a higher percentage of white people than the rest of SF - 78% vs. 49% citywide).

Letters: A reader writes to complain about Whole Foods applying for a liquor license because "it may attract more shoppers;" farewell Mystery Bookstore - you will be missed; another reader complains about parking on 24th Street so they drive to the Castro instead; a letter in defense of the blocked sidewalk violation citations ("sidewalks are for people!"); a complaint about a police car roaring down 24th St. at top speed ("a terrible accident could have occurred"); a warning about truth in advertising at Whole Foods on blueberries ("they weren't half-pint containers"); and a question about whether guest rentals are in fact legal (short answer: not usually and you need to pay taxes).

Cost of Living in Noe: The rental market is red-hot with 1% vacancy in "well-managed" buildings thanks to the Google shuttle buses, easy freeway access, and Noe's "hip nightlife." (?) Average price of a house in Noe: $1.17 million.

Short Takes: Music in the Park is this Saturday at Noe Courts; Open Studios comes to Noe on Oct 1-2 - visit Artspan.org for more details or pick up a schedule at Phoenix Books on 24th St.

September 6, 2011

Just in time for the return of Burners to SF, today Scott Wiener introduced this legislation:

SUPERVISOR WIENER TO INTRODUCE PUBLIC NUDITY LEGISLATION

Legislation would require nudists to cover public seating before sitting down and would require clothing to enter restaurants

At today's Board of Supervisors meeting, Supervisor Scott Wiener will introduce legislation to ensure that public nudity comports with basic concepts of public health. While there are many opinions about the appropriateness of people going nude in public, there is little disagreement that public nudity should be sanitary. Supervisor Wiener's legislation will help accomplish that goal.

Supervisor Wiener represents, among other neighborhoods, the Castro, which has seen an increase in public nudity recently.

The legislation will address two issues. First, it will require people who are nude in public to place an item -- for example, a towel -- underneath them when they sit down. This will avoid situations, as currently occurs, where nudists sit down on public seating without placing anything between their body and the seat. Second, the legislation will require nudists to don clothing before they enter a restaurant.

"San Francisco is a liberal and tolerant city, and we pride ourselves on that fact," said Supervisor Wiener. "Yet, while we have a variety of views about public nudity, we can all agree that when you sit down naked, you should cover the seat, and that you should cover up when you go into a food establishment."

September 3, 2011

The real summer in San Francisco is upon us, and the Friends of Noe Valley has unveiled the details [sic] for the Sept. 10 Music in the Park event at Noe Courts:

A neighborhood event with music, BBQ and fun-filled family activities including:

Emcee for the day Noe Valley’s own Michael Capozzola, comedian and cartoonist. Michael has performed at many local comedy clubs as well as hosted the Noe Valley Harvest Festival.

District 8 Rock Band, a rip-roaring amalgamation of roots, prog and indie elements, made up of local parents including drummer Dan Luscher from Noe Valley, who will treat us to a roster of their greatest hits.

Hilary Craddock, Noe Valley singer songwriter and piano teacher, along with former Playdate members Sharon Gillenwater, also from Noe Valley, and Rich Burns who preform in a style that is strong on harmonies with a bit of alternative twist.

Willow the Wisp a banjo, accordian group based in Noe Valley.

Hula hoop demo and workshop presented by Nicloe Wong, founder of Cherry Hoops. Nicole brings high-quality instruction complete with professional hoops to make it easy to learn this mesmerizing art form. Get ready for single hoop, poi-style twin hooping, and multi-hooping in this laughter-filled and fun workshop!

San Francisco Scottish Dancers who provide fun, fitness, friendship and great music in a performance including lively jigs, hornpipes and reels, and elegant strathspeys.

A Jumpy Castle that is sure to delight the kids.

What: Music in the ParkWhen: Saturday, September 10 11:00am-4:00pmWhere: Noe Courts (24th and Douglass)

September 1, 2011

Open only a year and a half, high-end florist Joseph Andrade is closing up shop at 3961 24th St. They weren't open when we noticed the sign, but the clerk at Vivon confirms the listing is not for the downstairs space long-vacated by Qoio.

But what we really want to know: why are vacant spaces on 24th St almost always listed by Rockwell? How's that working out for everyone?